New leaders will take over the House and Senate Armed Services committees, with a new chair of the Senate panel, three new House subcommittee chairs, and a handful of new members.
The changes have wide-ranging implications for the Air Force and Space Force, as committee and subcommittee chairs hold great sway over policy and spending issues affecting the services.
Senate
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) officially took charge of the Senate Armed Services Committee with his election Jan. 7. Wicker had been the ranking Republican on the committee for the past two years and now swaps seats with former Chairman Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), who will be ranking Democrat in the wake of the 2024 elections, which gave the Senate to the Republicans.
As chairman, Wicker is expected to advance plans for investing in the U.S. military unveiled last spring, in which he called for substantial increases in Pentagon spending.
Wicker opposes planned retirements of F-22 and F-15E fighter jets and wants to increase aircraft procurement above current plans by at least 340 more fighters in the next five years. He has also called for doubling the planned B-21 Raider fleet, from 100 to 200 bombers.
While being chairman cannot ensure those moves, Wicker’s views will have a major influence on the annual National Defense Authorization bill that sets Pentagon policy.
An Air Force veteran—he was a judge advocate general on Active and Reserve duty—Wicker represents a state best known in military circles for its shipbuilding industry, but that is also home to Air Force training hubs at Keesler and Columbus Air Force Bases. He is the the first former Airman to chair the SASC since Sen. Barry Goldwater, who led the committee from 1985 to 1987.
While the subcommittee chairs and ranking members for the SASC have yet to be announced, the full makeup of the committee has been. There are only three newcomers among the 27-senator panel: Sens. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) and Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.).
Banks previously served in the House and was chair of the House Armed Services personnel subcommittee. Slotkin was also a House Armed Services Committee member.
Sheehy represents Malmstrom Air Force Base, one of three ICBM bases, having defeated long-time Sen. Jon Tester, who was a top defense appropriator and a fierce advocate for nuclear modernization. Sheehy seems likely to continue that advocacy.
House
Unlike the Senate, control of the House did not change hands, although the Republican majority narrowed. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) will remain as chairman and may renew his push to move the headquarters of U.S. Space Command from Colorado Springs, Colo., to Redstone Arsenal in his home state. During Trump’s first term, SPACECOM was directed to move, but that decision was reversed during the Biden administration.
Rogers announced new committee members and subcommittee chairs on Jan. 7, among them Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-Tenn.), who will chair the strategic forces subcommittee, which oversees space and nuclear forces. He will be a key figure with regard to modernization of the strategic bomber and ICBM fleets, as well as in investing in new systems, including weapons, for the Space Force.
Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.), will stay on as chair of the tactical air and land forces subcommittee, and Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), a former Air Force general, will lead the cyber, IT, and innovation panel.
New to the committee is Rep. Jeff Crank (R-Colo.), who succeeds Doug Lamborn representing the Colorado Springs area. Lamborn was a top Space Force advocate in Congress and notably broke from Rogers and many other Republicans in advocating for SPACECOM to stay in Colorado. Crank has said he will continue to promote that position.
Other new committee members whose districts include or border Air Force Bases are:
- Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wisc.) – Volk Field Air National Guard Base
- Rep. Abraham Hamadeh (R-Ariz.) – Luke Air Force Base
- Rep. Mark Messmer (R-Ind.) – Hulman Field Air National Guard Base